Strikeforce Signs Ryan Couture

Ryan
Couture, son of UFC hall of famer Randy
Couture, will make his promotional and professional debut
against Lucas Stark
at Strikeforce Challengers 10 on Aug. 13 at the Dodge Theatre in
Phoenix. The event will air live on Showtime.

Strikeforce officials on Thursday finalized a contract with the
younger Couture, who trains out of Xtreme Couture Mixed Martial
Arts in Las Vegas.

Couture owns a 4-1-1 record as an amateur and last appeared in
March, when he fought Sean
Bollinger to a draw at a Tuff-N-Uff show in Las Vegas.
Bollinger choked Couture unconscious with a triangle choke as the
horn sounded ending round two, but Couture -- deemed by the referee
to have lost consciousness after the round was over -- was allowed
to continue. The fight ended in a deadlock.

Couture, a lightweight, follows in some enormous footsteps. His
father remains one of only two men -- B.J. Penn is
the other -- to hold UFC titles in multiple weight classes.